Device for connecting together telephone receivers in series or in parallel



April 20 1926o 1,581,630

. F. G. BROCKETT ET AL DEVICE FOR CONNECTING TOGETHER TELEPHONE RECEIVERS IN SERIES OR IN PARALLEL Filed June 8. 1922 fizu zzw a Patented Apr. 20,1926.

UNITED STATES isaiszie rarer OFFICE.

FREDERICK Gr. BROCKETT AND CLIFTON C. WEIGHT, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS; SAID BROCKETT ASSIGNOR TO SAID WRIGHT.

DEVICE FOR CONNECTING TOGETHER TELEPHONE RECEIVERS IN SERIES ORIN PARALLEL.

Application filed. June 8,

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that we, Fmionaicn G. Baconnrr and CLIFTON C. l Vmerrr, citizens of the United States, residing at Chicago, county of Cook, State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Devices for Connecting Together Telephone Receivers in Series or in Parallel, and declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

In our prior application filed April 5, 1922, Serial No. 5t9,789 we have disclosed a simple and novel connecting device where by a plurality of telephone receivers or the like may be connected in parallel to a pair of terminals. It may at times be desirable to connect a plurality of such head pieces in series with each other and the present invention may therefore be said to have for its object to improve the construction shown in the aforesaid application so as to permit a plurality of head pieces to be connected in series with each other, if desired, as well as in parallel with each other.

A further object of the present invention is to'produce a connecting device which will permit a plurality of head pieces to be connected across two terminals in series with each other and in parallel with another head piece or plurality of head pieces.

The various features of novelty whereby the present invention is characterized will hereinafter be pointedout with particularity in the claims; but, for a full understanding of the present invention and of its objects and advantages, reference maybe had to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein Figure 1 is a side elevation of a jack plug arranged in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is an end view of the plug;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal axial section of a plug, on an enlarged scale;

Fig. 4 is a section taken approximately on line 44: of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a section taken approximately on line 5-5 of Fig. 3.

In the drawings I have illustrated my invention only as applied to a jack plug and,

1922.. Serial No. 566,693.

having one end gradually reduced in diameter, as indicated at 2, to form a frustum of a cone. In the two ends of the member 1 are annular grooves 3 and 4, respectively, the greatest diameter of each groove being only slightly less thanthe external diameter of the corresponding end of the block. In each groove lies a ring of conductingmaterial, the rings being indicated at 5 and 6.

These rings are preferably made yieldable and resilient. These characteristics may conveniently be secured by making each ring out of a longv helical coil of spring wire bent into the form of a circle. The rings are held in the grooves by means of metal discs 7 and 8 placed against the ends of the blocks and each having a diameter sufficient topermit it to cover the corresponding ring. EX-

tending diagonally into the block through the conical face thereof are two sets of holes 9 and 10; the holes 9 being so drilled that a portion of the ring 5 will project into each of the same; and the holes 10-being so drilled that the ring 6 will project slightly into each of these holes. The result is that when a contact piece of a size to fit one of these holes is inserted into the same it will strike the corresponding ring, pressing the adjacent coils apart and making a sliding connection therewith as the contact piece is pushed farther in; thus insuring a good electrical connection between the contact piece and the ring. In order to permit the contact pieces to be easily inserted in the holes, the plates 7 and 8 have sections removed therefrom opposite the corresponding holes, as indicated at 11 and 12, respectively; thus leaving the springs free to flex laterally at each of the holes.

Suitable means are provided for connecting the rings 5, and 6 to the leading-in wires. The plates 7 and 8 engage with the respective rings 5 6 and serve as parts of the circuits, Through the head passes a stem comprising a central rod of conducting material contacting with the plate 8, and a sleeve 14 surroundingthe rod and separated therefrom by a shell 15 of insulating material, and contacting with the metal plate 7. Thus the rod 13 forms one terminal of the head while the sleeve 1 1 forms the other terminal. Y

The parts heretofore described are similar to those disclosed in our aforesaid application, with the exception of the excisions in the plates 7 and 8 which, in the present arrangement, permit the spring rings to yield more readily than in the prior construction. It will be seen that when one of the terminals of a head-piece is inserted in one of the holes 9 and the other terminal into one of the holes 10, the effective terminals of the head-piece will then be the rod 13 and the sleeve 14 of the connectingdevice, and that a plurality of such head pieces, when at tached to the connecting device, will be arranged in parallel with each other.

In order to permit a series arrangement of head-pieces to be secured, we have placed on the rod 13, beyond one end of the block 1, a second block of insulating material 17 having in the inner face thereof an annular groove 18 containing a ring 19 of conducting material similar to the other two rings. The block 17 is provided with holes 20 hearing the same relation to the ring 19 that the holes 9 and 10 bear to the other two rings. The ring 19 is held in the groove by means of a plate 21 similar to the plates 7 and 8 except that it need not be made of conducting material and, in fact, is preferably made of insulating material. It will be seen that if one terminal of a headpiece is placed in one of the holes 9 while the other terminal is placed in one of the holes 20, and the two terminals of another head-piece are inserted respectively in one of the holes 10 and in one of the holes 20, the two head-pieces will be connected in series with each other; the function of the ring 19 being simply electrically to connect together two terminals of two head-pieces while the remaining two terminals are connected to the respective terminals of the connecting device.

The stem of the connecting device may be made to serve to hold all of the parts together. In the arrangement shown, the rod 13 has on one end a head 22 which engages with the outer face of the block 17 the rod passing through this block as well as through the block 1. The sleeve 1 1 has thereon an enlargement 23 engaging with the rear face of the head. The rod is made long enough to project beyond the rear end of the sleeve and is provided on its projecting end with a nut 24 between which and the rear end of the sleeve is an insulating washer 25. lVhen the parts are assembled and the nut is screwed on, the whole is tied into a single self-sustaining unit.

Since sections of the plate 7 are cut away,

we prefer to place on the outer side of this plate a disc 26 which will conceal the openings in the plate 7. Furthermore, a disc 27 of insulating material may be placed be tween the plates 8 and 21. On the front end of the device may be arranged a disc 28 lying underneath the head on the rod 13, this disc serving conveniently as a name plate.

lVe claim:

1. A device of the character described comprising a block of insulating material having three rows of holes arranged beside each other and spaced apart from each other transversely of the lengththereof, three electrically independent conductors ar 'anged in said block each extending uninterruptedly in operation relative to one of said rows of holes, and terminals connected to: two of said conductors.

2. A device of the character described comprising a cylindrical block of insulating material having three rows of holes extending around the same and spaced apart from each other, three independent conductors arranged in said block each in operative relation to one row of holes, and terminals connected to two of said conductors.

3. A device of the character described, comprising a block of insulating material provided with three annular grooves spaced apart from each other lengthwise of the block, a resilient ring lying in each of said grooves, said block having in the sides thereof three sets of holes adapted toreceive detachable contact pieces, each set of holes being so disposed that the contact pieces therein engage with one of said rings, and'terminals connected to two of said rings.

4:. In a device of the character described, a block of insulating material having an annular groove therein, a helical coil of spring wire bent mto the form of a rmg and lying in said groove, and a plate of conducting material overlying said groove and engaging with said ring and constituting one terminal therefor, said block having therein a plurality of holes for the reception of detachable contact pieces, said holes being so disposed that the contact pieces therein are yieldingly engaged by said ring, said plate hit-V1119; a section removed therefrom opposite each hole in order to permit the coil to yield laterally upon the insertion of a contact piece in any one of the holes.

5. In a device of the character described, a block of insulating material having an annular groove therein, a helical coil of spring wire bent into the form of a ring and lying in said groove, and a holding plate overlying said groove and'enga'ging with said ring, said block having therein a plurality of holes for the reception of detachable contact pieces, said holes being so disposed that the contact pieces therein are yieldingly engaged by said ring, said plate having a section removed therefrom opposite each hole in order to permit the coil to yield laterally upon the insertion of a contact piece in any one of the holes.

6. A device of the character described comprising a block of insulating material containing three long uninterrupted parallel coextensive conductors lying side by side and spaced apart from and electrically independent of each other, a row of holes eX- tending into said block along each conductor to permit a series of contact pieces to be inserted in the holes of each row and be engaged With the corresponding conductor, and terminals connected to the tWo outer conductors.

7. A device of the character described comprising a block of insulating material containing three uninterrupted independent co-extensive long parallel conductors a1 ranged side by side and spaced. apart from each other, terminals connected to two or said conductors and the third conductor being idle and electrically independent of each other, and a row of holes extending into the block along each conductor to permit contact pieces to be engaged with the conductors, there being at least as many holes in the roW corresponding to the said third conductor as there are holes in either of the other rows.

In testimony whereof, We sign this specification.

FREDERICK G. BROGKETT. CLIFTON C. l/VRIGHT. 

